1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 112 The Timid Yet Flirtatious Little Scoundrel

Gu Bin's expression changed for the first time, and he quickly jumped three meters away.

"Say it."

Lin Xiyu approached with a playful laugh: "If you don't tell me, I'll step on you."

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you, don't come any closer."

Gu Bin was genuinely terrified of being trampled on, and subconsciously took a few steps back.

"Hahaha."

Seeing his expression, like a wronged young wife, Lin Xiyu couldn't help but laugh out loud.

-

The story of Sixth Grandfather and his first love, like that of most people during the War of Resistance, is a tragedy of the times.

My sixth grandfather was an underground member of the Communist Party at that time, and he disguised himself as a merchant to infiltrate behind enemy lines.

The girl is the daughter of a warlord. The two meet by chance and fall in love. The girl is willing to give up everything to elope with him.

However, Sixth Grandfather had a mission to complete and could not betray the organization.

Heartbroken and desperate, the girl obeyed her parents' wishes and married someone she didn't love.

Not long after their marriage, she became depressed and fell ill, eventually passing away.

-

"Sixth Grandfather must really love her."

Lin Xiyu sighed upon hearing this: "For her sake, he never married and lived a lonely life."

"Just listen to it and don't tell anyone."

Gu Bin carefully instructed: "No one knows about this except me. I only found an old photo from before Liberation in my sixth grandfather's study when I was a child, and guessed the general truth. That's when he told me the secret that had been buried for many years."

"Only you know this?"

Lin Xiyu couldn't hide her surprise: "Your maternal grandfather is his own brother, and he didn't even say that?"

"No."

Gu Bin smiled wryly: "As the second eldest brother, Grandpa has been working tirelessly for Sixth Grandpa, arranging his marriage since he was young."

"I arranged many blind dates for him, but he always refused, citing that he was injured during the War of Resistance against Japan, his health was poor, and he could not have children. Over time, no one mentioned it anymore."

-

"Ugh."

Lin Xiyu wisely refrained from asking whether her sixth grandfather was truly unable to have children.

Revealing someone's wounds will bring retribution; you'll be struck by lightning.

“You are blessed.”

Gu Bin pinched her cheek and smiled indulgently: "With Sixth Grandfather protecting you, even I wouldn't dare to bully you."

"Will he really protect me?"

Lin Xiyu still felt like she was dreaming, and couldn't believe that she would have such good luck.

It's really hard to believe that an elderly stranger, someone you've only met once, would genuinely protect someone with whom you have no blood relation.

"Sixth Grandfather was a man of utmost affection and integrity. He was very devoted to his relationships and could not tolerate any injustice."

Gu Bin had his own perspective: "I bought you this set of blue-flowered jade jewelry not only because the same jewelry that the woman he likes once wore, but also to show him my attitude towards you."

“If I am not wholeheartedly devoted to you and love you, but instead have the intention of playing with your feelings, not only will Sixth Grandfather not agree to us being together, but he will also feel disgusted. My image in his heart will plummet, and I will no longer be the junior he values ​​most.”

-

"Since you know Sixth Grandfather so well, why did you still go to Shanghai?"

Lin Xiyu had mixed feelings: "Even if you come to Beijing, with your intelligence, even if there are setbacks, you have the ability to change his mind. There's no need to hide so far away."

"Back then, you weren't part of my life plan, and I tried to avoid the constraints of family ties."

Gu Bin did not deliberately avoid her question. He gently stroked her face, his eyes tender: "Things will be different from now on. It was your own personal charm that moved Sixth Grandfather and made him acknowledge your existence. I can also benefit from your success and will no longer have to go through an arranged marriage and waste my life with someone I don't like."

"Then what about before?"

When Lin Xiyu heard that her life plan didn't include her, she felt a moment of disappointment: "Do you mean you never liked me before graduating from high school?"

"Cough cough."

Gu Bin's eyes flickered slightly.

"Not at all?"

Lin Xiyu persisted in asking the question.

"That's another issue."

Gu Bin stared at him for a few seconds, then smiled leisurely: "I have already answered two of your deadly questions. To be fair, you answer one of my questions first, and then I will tell you my answer."

"What do you want to ask?"

Lin Xiyu's heart skipped a beat, and a bad premonition welled up inside her.

"Before you graduate."

Sure enough, the next second, Gu Bin's words made her blush instantly: "Have you ever liked me?"

"I, that."

Lin Xiyu's heartbeat became erratic.

Peeking at his college application and dreaming of going to university in the same city as him was the silliest thing she ever did.

It's so embarrassing, she would rather die than let him know.

"Have it?"

Gu Bin refused to let her go and took a step closer.

"Early romantic relationships are not allowed in high school."

Lin Xiyu hesitated for a long time before finally finding a good reason for herself.

"Ah."

Gu Bin laughed in exasperation: "That sounds so familiar. Qu Peng seems to have said something similar. Could it be a popular saying these days, used to excuse unfaithful men with philandering hearts?"

Don't compare him to me.

Lin Xiyu quickly retorted, "I'm very innocent, I've never liked anyone."

"A very innocent high school student"

Gu Bin persisted, jokingly asking, "Do you like to daydream and peek at others during class?"

"I didn't peek."

Lin Xiyu panicked and avoided his gaze.

"There's none?"

Gu Bin took another step closer, cornering her against the wall: "Who's deliberately hiding their face with a book and peeking at me?"

"not me."

Lin Xiyu's back was stiff, almost pressed against the wall.

"A flirtatious yet cowardly little rascal."

Gu Bin braced his arms against the wall, trapping her in front of him: "You sneak peeks in class, then disappear faster than a rabbit after class, using the excuse of helping the teacher grade papers to hide in the office, only returning when the bell rings, disturbing others' studies, and then acting like nothing happened."

"I didn't hide."

Lin Xiyu was surprised that he remembered it so clearly, and her beautiful eyes widened suddenly.

"Didn't dodge?"

Gu Bin pretended not to notice the change in her expression and continued to ask, "Why were you running so fast?"

"The teacher asked me to go to the office."

"The teacher didn't ask you to attend every class." "I'm the class monitor, so of course I should be more proactive."

Lin Xiyu didn't want to admit that she was trying to avoid the arrogant and domineering daughter of a certain mayor.

Zhang Xiaoqian must have taken some kind of wrong medicine; she's always targeting her.

She didn't want to openly oppose her, which is why she kept tolerating it and tried to avoid her as much as possible.

"Does the class monitor really need to take a stroll around the playground after school?"

Gu Bin changed the subject, his smile widening: "Don't tell me the teacher asked you to supervise our basketball game, I don't believe it."

"Cough cough."

Lin Xiyu almost choked on her own saliva.

She would occasionally wander around the playground before leaving school to catch a glimpse of him from afar, but she never expected that he would spot her.

"Spying on others playing ball."

Gu Bin, convinced he had her weakness, looked slightly smug: "Still dare to deny it? Don't you like me?"

"you misunderstood."

Lin Xiyu's ears burned: "Actually, I didn't come to see you, I came to see the show. I heard someone confessed to you, so I thought I'd go and watch the excitement."

"Aren't you here to watch me play basketball?"

Gu Bin stopped smiling, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

"No, it's not."

Lin Xiyu lowered her eyelids somewhat guiltily.

"Really?"

"no."

Just as Lin Xiyu was about to struggle again, her soft lips were sealed with someone's.

A punitive kiss surged forth, instantly engulfing her.

-

The "Spring Water Family" series has been a huge hit since it was featured on CCTV News, and its popularity in Jinan is comparable to that of the Spring Festival Gala.

The soaring ratings brought Du both joy and pressure. He endured the back pain and was discharged from the hospital after less than three days in bed.

Gu Bin was very disappointed when he received the notice and had to say goodbye to his sixth grandfather.

Wang Fan and Li Liang returned to Jinan with them, but Qu Peng stayed behind under the pretext of getting familiar with the campus in advance.

Gu Bin didn't expose his little scheme. Before leaving, he gave him some special instructions, telling him to be careful in everything he did and not to break any taboos that might upset his sixth grandfather.

Qu Peng readily agreed, patting his heart to assure him that he would treat the old man as his own grandfather, serving him faithfully and fulfilling his filial duties.

Reassured, Gu Bin and his group bought tickets overnight, boarded the train, and returned to Jinan early the next morning.

-

Director Du, with bandages wrapped around his waist, remained steadfast on the front lines of filming.

The Culture and Tourism Bureau praised the promotional video and suggested that more videos showcasing local Jinan folk culture be filmed.

Director Du gladly accepted the task and led the program crew back to Qushuiting Street to interview artisans who carry on the cultural heritage.

Jinan's most distinctive traditional folk crafts include dough figurines, clay figurines, sugar blowing, paper cutting, New Year paintings, and Lu embroidery, among others.

The most traditional performing art is shadow puppetry.

The crew arrived at Qushuiting Street and happened to see someone performing a shadow puppet show, which attracted a large group of children to watch.

Did you watch shadow puppet shows when you were a child?

Lin Xiyu approached a group of children and spoke eloquently in front of the camera.

"Shadow puppetry, also known as shadow play or lantern shadow play, is an ancient traditional folk art in China. It originated in the Western Han Dynasty, flourished in the Tang Dynasty, and reached its peak in the Qing Dynasty."

"There is a legend about shadow puppetry, which tells a love story about an emperor."

"It is said that after the death of Consort Li, Emperor Wu of Han's beloved concubine, he was so grief-stricken that he neglected state affairs. Minister Li Shaoweng saw children playing with cloth dolls on the road, and the shadows cast on the ground were lifelike. He had a sudden inspiration and cut out an image of Consort Li from cotton cloth and respectfully invited the emperor to watch it. The emperor was delighted after seeing it and was overjoyed. From then on, shadow puppetry spread widely among the people."

"Jinan's shadow puppetry has unique local characteristics. To watch shadow puppetry in Jinan, you must be able to understand the Jinan dialect."

"Jinan dialect also has its own unique characteristics. In Jinan, there is a term called 'teacher', a type of casual chat called 'chatting', a type of procrastination called 'delay', a type of prowess called 'standing up', a type of calculation called 'calculation', a type of playfulness called 'wolf dash', a type of praise called 'praise', and a type of mischief called 'suoyi'."

"Jinan dialect is not difficult to understand. As long as you can speak Mandarin, you can understand Jinan dialect about 90% of the time."

"Jinan dialect has a unique local flavor. If you don't know what 'wolf dash' or 'suoyi' means, you won't be able to appreciate the unique humor of Jinan dialect."

-

"Wang Xiaosan, where have you run off to again? Go home and do your homework!"

Before the words were finished, a lion's roar, octaves higher, came from a courtyard house not far away, vividly demonstrating the essence of the phrase "wolf's flight."

"Wang Xiaosan, your mom is calling you again."

"Go home quickly, or you'll get beaten up again."

"Why do you have to do homework? Summer vacation isn't over yet. Can't you do it in a couple of days?"

The children started making a ruckus and laughing, forcing the filming to be temporarily suspended.

"These brats are so greedy."

Director Du smiled helplessly, then sternly chased them away: "Go, go, go home and do your homework. If you don't do your homework, you'll all get a beating."

"I won't write, I won't write, I won't write."

"I just don't want to write."

"slightly"

The children were playful and couldn't be sternly controlled by his old man's stern face. The scene was noisy and chaotic. In the end, Gu Bin had to step in and give each of them a sugar figurine to coax them away.

-

The children's commotion ruined Director Du's mood for filming the shadow puppet show.

Seeing that he was clutching his aching back and not in high spirits, Gu Bin bought a small monkey-shaped sugar figurine to cheer him up.

"Hehe, you're treating me like a child."

Director Du took the little monkey and said with deep emotion, "Back in the day, when I was a child, I loved watching people make sugar figurines. Every time I saw someone set up a stall, I would eagerly go over and buy some, but I wouldn't eat them even if they melted at home."

"Me too"

Lin Xiyu laughed and chimed in, "I remember it very clearly. One year was the Year of the Dragon, and my grandma bought me a dragon. I was so happy that I held it up with both hands, afraid of dropping it and breaking it. My cousin was greedy and after finishing his own sugar figurine, he secretly bit into the dragon's tail when I wasn't looking. The dragon cracked with a snap, and I was so sad that I cried loudly. My grandma was so angry that she beat him with a rolling pin."

"Your house is quite lively, always a chaotic mess."

Gu Bin thought of her glorious history of hitting people when she was a child and laughed mockingly.

"Cough cough."

Lin Xiyu's ears turned red, and she coughed twice in embarrassment.

"Let's film one more scene of sugar blowing and then call it a day. My back is killing me."

Director Du was persuaded by what the two said, and then turned his attention to the sugar figurine stall.

"okay."

The crew members had no objections, packed up their equipment, and moved to another location.

-

"The rattle drum and the windmill turn, the glass candy is blown with a clatter."

Lin Xiyu memorized her lines and followed the group to the sugar-blowing stall.

"Old craftsmen use molten sugar syrup to draw various patterns on stone slabs, and then blow air through a thin tube to create vivid and cute little animals."

"This process may seem simple, but it actually requires very sophisticated skills. The most crucial steps are the pinching, pulling, and turning techniques of the fingers."

"As for the historical origins of sugar blowing, it can be traced back to the early Ming Dynasty. It is said that Liu Bowen, a founding hero of the Ming Dynasty, hid his identity and made a living by selling sugar in order to avoid persecution."

"During this period, sugar was creatively heated and softened to make various sugar figurines, which were very popular with children and spread widely, becoming a unique folk art."